Pre-Christmas Festivities

The holiday season kicked off with a major first event...going to the Tivoli to see Brice Martin (a dear friend to us) and the Chattanooga Boys Choir perform the "Singing Christmas Tree". Well, we all looked fancy for the matinee performance...
The kids in sweaters knitted by their Great-Aunt Karen and Kestrel sported a hair-bow. We made it to the performance and found our seats and I should have known it was going to be a rough one when Layton shouted, "Mom, this is really kind of boring," while the Boys Choir was mid-performance. So, we did not make it until the end and I left wondering, "What in the world was I thinking in taking these two to something like this by myself?" Good news: lesson learned. We just aren't old enough for stuff like that yet.

Next in holiday fun was the Annual Kids Christmas Party hosted by our great friends Laura and Anne Marie.
We tried to get all of the kids together for a photo, but with four 2 year olds, one 3 year old, a 4 year old and an 18 month old, the photo was a bit hard to set up.
In this one, Anne Marie is conducting, Acadiana had the right idea and was picture perfect and Layton wanted to be the center of the photo.

All of the kids received a gift from the guest of honor, Gran-Jan and it was great to have be a part of our kid-ridden life for a night. Thanks, Jan, for thinking of the kids!
All of the kids were dressed in their holiday gear. Layton had another one-of-a-kind sweater on made my Aunt Karen and the Martin Sisters were as cute as ever with their elf inspired look.
Of course, I think Kestrel is the cutest so her Christmas Tree jumper was perfect.
Laura had each of the kids create their own gingerbread house. It turned out to be a lot of fun and each mom had to help out a lot with the little ones.
Here is a series of photos on the house building...

After craft-time, Laura provided an excellent meal for all of us to share. She is a terrific hostess and always outdoes herself. She made wraps, hummus and corn chowder for the moms and mac n cheese and chicken nuggets for the kids. Delish!!
Kestrel got to open a present before Christmas and she enjoyed ripping the paper.
And after totally destroying Laura's home, it was time to put shoes on and say good night. Thanks, Laura and Anne Marie, for having all of us and making it such a special party for everyone!And, keeping with Christmas, the weather decided to show us winter the next morning...

Layton loves the snow and bundling up, but I couldn't coerce Kestrel out of the house. Maybe she wanted a faux-fur lined snow suit since she is such a princess. They were back in the house ready for hot cocoa in a flash - it was only 4 degrees including the wind chill.

After having such fun festivities with my kiddos, I needed a vacation (and several stiff drinks). It was a difficult semester for me (to say the least) and some time away was just what I needed. Nana and Grampa came to stay with the kids (Luke still lives in Jacksonville, FL) while I jetted off to Seattle to see my friends, Dave and Coreen.

They were excellent hosts and Coreen made her famous pad thai to celbrate the 1-year anniversary for Dave's business Alembic Media, LLC. His business is growing and Dave, per usual, is doing greatWe even got a bit cheesy....and Dave loved it!! Congrats, guys. Keep working!!I then hopped on a train and headed for Portland where the all-girls met me for our annual trip. This year, there was a new addition....
Trent Grier!!!! He is absolutely wonderful and Sheila is the BEST mom! He is such a good baby that we said he could come every year, but I bet Sheila would say otherwise (I mean, it is necessary for a mommy to get a break every now and then).
It was a low key weekend full of the usual: shopping, eating, drinking, laughing and happiness! We are the luckiest girls in the world to have each other!! I love you all!!!
One of the highlights for me was the trip to Voodoo Doughnut.
SOOOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOOOOD!!!!
And, yes, that is a chocolate cake donut with chocolate frosting and cocoa puffs. And, yes, it was the best!!
But, truly, the highlight was spending time with my girls and getting to meet Sheila's little one.


I'd also say that Trent, aka Tobias, had a great time too. Who wouldn't with everyone loving on you all the time?

Now...BRING ON SANTA CLAUS!!!!

Layton Featured in Andrew Kornylak's Beta Series Video

The Beta - Long Ways Down from Andrew Kornylak on Vimeo.

November 2010 Update

Layton was worried that I would be lonely at night with Luke gone, so he provided company in the form of 5 Heros (L to R): Stormer, Thunder, Explode, Furno and Bulk. I was a bit surprised to find them in my bed when I rolled over and my arm hit something so pokey. Layton is such a sweet kid and knowing he thinks of me in the night makes me happy to be his mom. He was also in the bed with us, and I couldn't help wonder how long he was up doing all of the transport of these Heros.

Some days, the kids like to start off with a bubble bath
And delicious french toast - the trick is cinnamon and pure vanilla mixed with the egg batter.
On this particular day, Kestrel allowed me to create a hairdo! She usually wants nothing to do with it even though we think she looks so cute.


These types of days are typical and we spend our time hanging around the house. The kids get into a lot of mischief and I spend a bit of time cleaning up after them.
We were really lucky this fall because Luke has had a bunch of time off and he has been able to spend time with Layton and teaching him new things....like BMXing. Yes, Layton LOVES to BMX race!! This is a series of shots at the track getting a feel for it. He is riding a 12 in. Toy Story bike Santa brought last year. I have to say, it is quite impressive to watch him come off the starting hill,
get geared up for the whoop-dee-doos,
and finish strong.
He has since been outfitted in race gear and a new 18 in. Redline micro-mini racer. More pictures to come as we practice more for a race debut!

OK, so now for the pics related to the title of the post...
We had a wonderful Halloween this year but not too many pics. The busier we are, the less I remember to bring the camera. We were busy with a visit from Bapi and then quickly prepped for the big neighborhood Halloween block party.
This year, Layton was....
and he was really into everything Halloween.
Kestrel was a black cat and could really care less about it. She basically wore black. She tore her tail off (Luke pinned it to himself), refused face painting, and had no idea why every kid was so hyped up. She had a great time and next year may be a bit more ready to participate. Hopefully, she'll let me grab a picture :)
We did carve pumpkins on Halloween night (we trick-or-treated on the 30th) and, overall, had a great Halloween!!!


This Thanksgiving, I drove the kids to Naples by myself to visit Nana, Grandpa, Emmy and Tea Beth. The car ride was long and not too horrible (though it had its moments), and TOTALLY worth it! The weather was terrific (the best it has ever been when I have visited) - it allowed us to go to the beach, swim every day and play outside. Unfortunately, I do not have too many photos of Thanksgiving, but a couple of Layton at the Naples Holiday Festival. We watched a local ballet school dance to the Nutcracker. I don't know about you, but watching 5 and 6 year-olds dance with the Sugar Plum Fairy makes me incredibly happy and puts me in the mood for the Christmas.
It "snowed" in downtown Naples for the event
and Layton got to tell Santa what he wanted for Christmas....ALL of the Legos in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD!!
We left Naples to find Chattanooga chilly compared to the shorts and T-shirt weather in southern Florida. After seeing Santa we were all in the mood to decorate for Christmas.
This year, Layton was really into decorating the Christmas House. This log cabin was built by my Grandfather umpteen (a word my family uses to mean many) years ago and doll furniture older than me fits into it perfectly. I put a new roof on it last year, but it is still pretty much the same as it was umpteen years ago...
Kestrel was fascinated by it too and wanted to help so badly. She tried....
but her brother took over when he saw her methods...
We finished up and "raised the festivus pole" for 2010!!!!! layton said his eyes were happy, but he was too tired to smile...Bahumbug...that's the spirit :)
and I added some more festivus with a decorated window...
And for those who don't get it (or don't know us well), we are also very traditional...

Get ready for the Holidays - they will come and go in the blink of an eye. Enjoy the season and try not to get too wrapped up in the commercialism of it all...FESTIVUS FOR THE REST OF US!!!!!!!!!!!!!